Coin Belgium 2 Euros Commémo. 2020 - Jan van Eyck

2 Euros Commemorative BELGIUM 2020

Theme : Jan van Eyck

Bi-metallic (nickel silver centre - cupronickel ring) - 8 5 g - 25 75 mm in diameter - 2 20 mm thick.
Issued in 150,000 copies in BU coincard

Supplied under official coincard (various versions)

 In 2020, Belgium is dedicating a year to Jan van Eyck (c. 1390 - 1441). The man who broke new ground with his brushstrokes and his translucent oil painting technique achieved exceptional results. The world marvelled at the realism of his works, his sense of detail, the perfection of his compositions and his mastery of colour. Recognised during his lifetime, he was an official painter at the court of Philip the Good and was also among the first to sign his works.
 
His life remains a mystery, but his work is celebrated even though only around twenty paintings have survived. His famous altarpiece "The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb" has been on display for six centuries in St Bavo's Cathedral in Ghent. It has recently undergone a remarkable restoration!
 
This new Belgian piece reproduces part of "The Man in the Red Turban", a work exhibited at the National Gallery in London. Many consider it to be a self-portrait by Van Eyck. The composition is complemented by a painter's palette and brushes, the master's original signature and his name. The piece is presented in a coincard decorated with the painter's self-portrait and a detail from the altarpiece of the Mystic Lamb. Two versions will be offered: one in Flemish and the other in Walloon.

Edge: grooved and inscribed with a 2 followed by two stars, repeated six times, alternating right side up and upside down.